The long reach of racism in American society is an important part of the Mass Incarceration story, but contrary to some recent accounts, the two phenomena are not the same. There are aspects of Mass Incarceration that can best be explained through a race lens and others that cannot. This chapter offers a way to distinguish between these aspects and explains why the distinction matters in understanding the rise of Mass Incarceration and the prospects for reform.

Reacting to a Black president, voters elected Donald Trump in 2016. He was a real estate entrepreneur who operated at the edge of the law on real estate. He tried to change laws to help him and skirted the edge of reality when he could not. He continued his business while in office and earned money from government operations. He also was a racist who encouraged rural white people to despise Blacks and try hard to hurt them. He tried and failed to repeal Obamacare. Following 2008, investment of all kinds diminished. Physical investment went down; financial investment became harmful to the economy; educational investment was decreased ,and social capital evaporated. When the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic struck, Trump refused to lead a government effort to deal with it, leading to more than 500,000 deaths and economic disaster. Trump ran for reelection on his 2016 program and lost his bid for reelection. President Biden attempted to reign in the pandemic and restore prosperity over continuing Republican opposition.